This blog is dedicated to applique. Glorious applique!!! The focus here will be hand applique, but there is room for machine applique too. Kim McLean is the designer whose patterns and quilts we will be working on together. Are you ready?! Let's SEW!!!

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Friday, September 24, 2010

Help wanted!!

Hi all, I am hoping someone can share a technique that will help me master the tight, inside curves on many of the pieces for the Roseville Album pattern. The pieces I'm having the most trouble with are the ones that look something like oak leaves. I am doing needle turn; I trim the allowance to about an 1/8th of an inch, clip the curves and am even using a drop or two of fray check. I still am having trouble with fraying and it's difficult to turn under enough to get a smooth curve along the lines. Any suggestions you have will be most welcome. I will be working hard to try to master this in the meantime. Nedra

Nedra----I know how you feel and there are a lot of those little oak leaves!!!!I was getting a lot of fraying and used my toothpick to turn it under instead of the needle. It worked well for me. I also wait until I get to that part before I trim it down and clip the curves. I think handling it a lot makes it fray. Hope that helps!

Nedra, I some time put a little glue stick on my toothpick right before I run it under the curve. Seems to help hold it until I can stitch it down.These little spots are my least favorite part of applique' they never look good to me. I think I put way too much stitching on mine trying to hold it in place.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try all of them and see if I get better!! Nancy, I totally agree with you, these curves are my least favorite part of the applique and I too feel I put way too many stitches in the curves as well. Nedra

"The New Appliqué Sampler" by Piece of Cake has great step by step photos of how to do all the different tricky bits of needle turn appliqué. I have never done a class, but found it covered all the techniques I needed to learn on my own. I don't cut all the way back to 1/8" but rather a scant 1/4", and only clip as I come to the interior curves. You should have more stitches in the interior curves :-). Good Luck!

I clip just shy of the turn under line and sweep the seam allowance under from past the curve on the left side (if your right handed) right up to your where the next stitch is to go, then hold it down with my thumb. If you do need to use a glue, try glue baste it or glue stick on a toothpick. Fray stoppa can yellow over time. If none of the suggestions seem to be working, ask again, one of us could do a photo tutorial.

I too use a toothpick to turn under inner points, much better than the needle. Also, before you get to the last one or two stitches, in front of the V, go ahead and turn under the other side and finger press it good. When you get to the V, instead of putting the needle just behind the last stitch, put it down deeper under the fabric, this will lock the point well. One more thing and probably the most important, don't rock the needle back up. When you are within a stitch or two of the V, stab down, pull the thread all the way to the back and then stab up, making sure you are keeping the needle straight. Does this all work perfect all the time....nope but it does get better with practice.....sorry long comment :0)

Mmmm. This does take a bit of practice and experience. I cut my seam allowance to a scant 1/4". As I approach those inner curves I take one nick into the seam allowance almost up to, but a thread or two away from my draw line. A (spit) moistened tooth pick is my tool of choice for needle turn. The moist tooth pick sort of holds onto the fabric as I sweep under the seam allowance. Then I gently twirl the tooth pick out from under the applique shape while holding/pinching that swept under seam allowance with my other hand. It does take some finagling and practice, but I KNOW you CAN do it!!! ; ) If I can do it, you can too!!!

Nedra, I cut away the fabric as I'm coming to stitch, and I also clip the concave curve very close to the line, sweep the fabric in with the needle and press with your fingers. The fabric usually stay folded in long enough for the stitching to be done. If you are still having problem, let me know, I'll scan the page from the Fabric of Society book, it has a page on needleturn applique. Kim McL